Should they offer their back-up choice the job made vacant when Mark Hughes was axed, he could accept the post without the FAI being entitled to compensation.

Stoke are ready to pay £4m compensation to Espanyol and offer ex-Watford boss Sanchez Flores a big transfer kitty and a £7.5million contract.

They want their top target to pen a 2½-year deal on £60,000 a week — with a survival bonus. Sanchez Flores held talks with Espanyol’s owners last night — after his side beat Levante 2-0 to earn a 3-2 aggregate win and a place in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey.

After the game, he said: “I’m not going to talk about myself. My professional commitment is very clear over my 30 years in football.”